A BOOKLOVER'S UTOPIA

What Happened to the Library?

I love buying new books. The feeling you get when you get a brand new book, take in the sweet smell of freshly printed paper, and turn the first crinkly pages is ultimate bliss. With the rise of Booktube and book bloggers there has been a bigger push of constantly buying brand new books. There is no denying that having a large book collection is a dream come true for any book lover. However, sometimes that dream is not attainable for everyone. Let’s face it. Books are expensive and they take up quite a bit of room. While I would love to be able to have a library like the one in Beauty and the Beast (can you say library goals?), I just can’t afford to buy all the books I want nor can I afford living in a place with enough room to store them (broke student life). That’s where my favorite place in the world comes in — the library.

Just think about it. The library is a place with thousands of books at your fingertips that you can check out (my library lets you have 30 books checked out at a time, 30!!) and read completely free! I feel like the book community has kind of turned away from the library and used book stores, in favor of shiny new releases. Don’t get me wrong. I love shiny new releases. They are amazing and beautiful, but there is a certain charm in reading a book that is so “well-loved”. The wear and tear of the books reveals the countless times this book has told its story and impacted people’s lives, which is a beautiful thought when you think about it. It makes you feel like part of a community because you know someone else has picked up and read that same book you’re holding in your hands and has had some sort of reaction to it like you are having at the moment.

I love going to the library. It allows me to read as much as I want. It is a place for people who love reading. It doesn’t matter what your status in life is. At the library, we are all one thing– readers. It is the great equalizer of the book world. That being said having a book collection is great. The library helps me find books I want to add to my collection. When I fall in love with a book I’m reading and I know that it is something I would like to reread at some point or share it with others, I buy it and add it to my collection. At the end, when I look at my book collection I see books that really mean something to me and remind me of a time in my life.

Here’s an idea. Have crafty book lovers make new book covers to take with them to the library. Then every book you read can be bound temporarily with a shiny new cover and feel as crisp as a new release. You just craft a cover for the book you aspire to read next and take it with you.

Now that I’ve seen your post, I want to paint a room to look like that picture. 😛 Walls covered in books I design. Maybe throw in a few secret panels that pull out to reveal surprises.

For the poor “renter,” what can you do without a library down the street? I suppose start a neighborhood book exchange.

There are these things outside the PC called a door, a window and a sidewalk that leads to a little library box down the street, too. 🙂 I don’t need an APP to find books…unless that’s a digital book exchange? And, how is that any better than just hooking up with an e-book service? I think that kinda defeats the point of holding the real thing. I suddenly see a distant Star Trek future of people bringing up every form of book on a digital tablet and talking about some ancient author……

Sorry, Dr. Crusher. I was busy reading The Hero and the Crown, again. Maybe next week you can teach me how to carve a turkey with that glowing pen.

I love the library and I visit their often. The library may become a thing of the past because people might just start using their e- readers all the time but I wouldn’t want that to happen because a book is authentic and nothing can replace it. I really like your blog. It is really good. I can’t wait to read your next post 🙂